A Story of a Pack Leader
by Jesse Rae
Summary: This story is about a new flock, that call themselves The Pack, and how they came together and eventually met The Flock. This is my first story so tell me if it sucks or needs improving, but try to be nice about it please. I do not own Maximum Ride. FAX.
1. Prologue

**Ok, so this is my first story, so please try to be nice if it sucks.**

_Prologue_

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"HELP!" we screamed at the top of our lungs. But the strange men quickily gagged us It wasn't likely anyone would have heard us anyways. We were at the long-ago abandond junkyard we spent most of our weekends at. Me and my best friend Rock were seven years old, barely in the second grade, and we were fighting for our lives. If you could really call it a fight.


	2. Kidnapped

_This is the story of how I became the leader of my own flock._

_Chapter 1_

_Kidnapped_

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Rock had just been about to leave after a long day of us talking and looking through long lost junk that people had trashed ages ago, normal kid curiousity, when two men that looked like doctors Rock's mom worked with jumped out from behind a pile of random broken house appliances. They grabbed us and tied our hands and legs behind our backs, ignoring our kicks and ourattempts to punch and scratch at their faces. After they had gagged us they slipped dark sacs, that smelled like the formiliar scent of the hospital, over our heads. I for one had never gotten used to that sickly smell oddly resembling cleaning supplies.

_Oh my god, oh my god! What's happening? Who are these people? Where are they taking us? What's that noise? Where are we?_

My mind was racing. I didn't know what to do or where I was... and frankly, I wasn't sure I wanted to know. By this time the smell was really getting to me, it was getting more and more difficult to breath. I was slowly passing out, I couldn't even tell whether my eyes were still open or not due to the darkness. I could faintly hear Rock's breathing getting deeper and deeper, by then I had finally fallen asleep (or what I could only identify as sleeping).

When I woke up nothing seemed right. I couldn't remember where I was or how I got there. It smelt like the hospital Rock's mom worked at, yet somehow different. What was I doing at the hospital? Slowly I opened my eye lids. The light was practically blinding and I had to wait for my eyes to adjust, but I didn't see a hospital room and I wasn't hurt... or not yet. 


	3. Caged Children

_Chapter 2_

_Caged Children_

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I couldn't beleive what I was seeing... I wasn't sure what I was seeing. Was I dreaming? I wish. As soon as I had opened my eyes I knew something was wrong. But I couldn't bring myself to remember what had happened. I knew it was something big.

What I saw was a big, heavily lit room crammed with what I identified as dog cages; and there were high-tech security cameras everywhere. But it wasn't all of those things that alarmed me, it was the simple fact that i was seeing these things through the threaded bars of one of the cages. There were others in the same condition as me, and some were even worse. There were kids of all ages mostly younger than me, and very few older. Most of them seemed on the brink of death and others seemed almost inhuman, deformed somehow.

As this registered in my mind and I realized this could soon be me I became angrier and angrier with each passing moment. The rage was building inside of me, I felt like the heat of it was radiating from my skin, spreading like a disease. It felt good, powerful. I loved the feeling of power when I was angry, like I could rip apart anything that dared to challenge me. The burning flames of rage was enveloping me, I could see the redness rising to my eyes.

_Who could do this?! What kind of sick minded person would do this to children... to anyone? Whoever did this doesn't even deserve to be considered a person! What is this sick place?! How did I even get here._

I couldn't stand it. I began attacking the cage that kept me prisoner. I launched myself at the door of the cage multiple times over and over, bruising and scratching my right shoulder and arm. It hurt but I didn't care, my anger was fueling me in a way only pure anger and hate could. Just as I was sure my plastic and iron prison was beginning to move the door opened. Three men in a long white coat walked through the door.

Just then it all came flooding back to me, the junkyard, Rock, the 'doctors', being bound and gagged, everything. Instinctively, I looked around for Rock, my best friend, the boy that's always been there through thick and thin. Then for the first time I noticed him right across small space, that seemed to be cleared out to make room to walk, from me. He was lying on the bottom of his cage, seemingly limp but thankfully breathing. I let out a small sigh of releif as I saw his chest moving, taking in long, steady lungfuls of air.


	4. Something Changed

_Chapter 3_

_Something Changed_

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The man in the front of the group of men in white coats that came in looked bored, uncaring, as if everything about this room seemed painfully normal to him, like he couldn't care less if one of these children died right that second. I hated that man the moment I laid eyes on him. By the time the man got to my cage Rock had woken up and became alert immediately. The man bent down in front of my cage, so close I could smell his after shave that smelt about as sick as the chemical smell that seemed to radiate from somewhere in the room.

"This one." He said in an emotionless yet bored kind of tone. "_It_ is to go to lab 4B." As soon as he said it me and Rock's eyes both widened in horror. I couldn't beleive what was happening. "This ones a little trouble maker... we'll fix that soon enough." He said with a sick, twisted grin. He then opened my cage, grabbed me by the arm and yanked me out. I tried to run and fight my arm back, but the first man hit me upside the head so hard I passed out... again. I faintly heard Rock yell, "Jesse!" before my mind was completely consumed in darkness.

When I woke up this time I was strapped to something smooth, hard, and cold on my skin. I was lying on my now bare stomach, once I got my barrings I realized I was bound to a metal bed with my shirt peeled off of my small seven year old torso. My head ached where the man had hit me, speaking of which, he was on the other side of the room apparantly conferring with a woman wearing the same kind of long white coat as the others were.

_What's going on? What are they going to do to me? Am I going to die? Idon't want to die. I can't... I just can't die. Where is Rock? What did they do with him?_

I heard small parts of the man and woman's conversation. "You hit it!" "I had to, it wasn't cooperating." "If _she_ finds out about this, Shawn, she'll have our heads. What if it's damaged."... "What injection are we going to use?"... "We don't know all of the simptoms yet." Then as the man, 'Shawn', was about to say something more he happened to glance over at me. "I see the subject has woken. Let's just skip the rest of this conversation, since we both know I'm right, and proceed with the experiment." He said in a cocky I'm-always-right tone of voice. The woman just glared at him, but he didn't seem to notice.

He walked over with a confident, and yet again cocky, look on his face. He searched through one of the drawers near 'my bed' breifly before taking out a needle. At first I was releived, needles were never a big deal to me. Then he started to fill the needle with some kind of liquid I couldn't identify, then I started to panic. I knew there was something dangerous about that liquid. My breaths were starting to come out in little pants, and I felt like I was going to run out of air at any moment. He stuck the needle in my back near my shoulder blade and smiled that sick, twisted smile of his again. He was enjoying every moment of this, relishing in my fear, anger, and possibly my future pain.


	5. The Beggining of The Rest of Our Lives

_Chapter 4_

_The Beginning of The Rest of Our Lives_

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When the man, 'Shawn', had forced me back into the cage I was more afraid than I had ever been. I didn't know what the future held for me. I didn't know if I was going to die or not. I was terrified, what pain and misery awaited me? After Shawn had gone for a few minutes, in which time Rock used to stare at me with concern and fear and I used to again attack my cage, the crooked man came back. This time it was Rock's cage he stood in front of. The other men, that had been following Shawn around closely, noticed my sad attempt to escape and one of them quickily opened my cage and tranquilized me while I struggled to stay consious as they took my best friend to the same 'lab' I had just been dragged from. My attempt was without success and I soon fell into the darkness of my unconsious mind... again.

By the time I woke up this time I was in a new room. Rock was there to as well as two others and a few empty cages. The other two was a boy around my age and a girl around three or four years. The boy had pale blonde hair and gray-ish-blue eyes. He also seemed to have many round-ish marks all over him and something gray sticking out of his back. I looked closer and realized with suprise that this was no ordinary boy. The gray things sticking out of his back was indeed a pair of dusty crumbled-looking wings. I looked over at the girl and she also had a pair of wings, yet hers were more of a whitish-brown color and much smaller than the boy's. I glanced over at Rock and I could tell he noticed this as well. The girl also had big bright eyes the color of russet and light brown hair, darkened by the oily lack of washing.

The two odd children before us were staring at us wide eyed with curiosity and what seemed to be fear, of us or the men in white coats I couldn't be sure. After a few minutes of staring at each other in silence Rock finally broke the silence and whispered to the others, "hello?... I'm Rock. Do you know where we are?...What's youre names?" A few more moments of silence, then the boy with the wings finally brought up the courage to whisper back, "I'm Thorn... We're at The School."

_Three days later_

I didn't get much sleep that night, neither did Rock. The morning before my back started hurting near my shoulders. It was like a tingly, burning sensation that was piercing through my skin. I took several short hissing breaths hoping the pain would soon subside. I was in pain and I was cold, they hadn't given me my shirt back, and I wanted to go home; even if that home is just a hollowed space in an abandend junkyard. Thorn had explained a few days ago what going to happen, and now it was happening. I was growing wings.


	6. Successful?

_Chapter 5_

_Successful?_

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It has been a few months since me and Rock had started growing wings, by this time they had caught up to what I'm assuming should be normal size for my age, slightly bigger than Thorn's. But that's not all, apparently Rock wasn't only injected with bird DNA. He was also growing a tail, ears, and claws. He was turning into what Thorn had called an eraser, half dog and half human, onlu Rock was bird too and he couldn't morph all of the way. By this time I'm sure Rock had turned eight years old, It's pretty depressing knowing he has to spend it in a cage meant for dogs.

They have been doing horrible things to us, treating us like animals. They put shock collars on us and made us run on treadmills or through mazes. They shocked us if we slowed down, and they also had wires under our feet that heat up if we slow down during these running 'tests'. Every day they fought me into that small little cage. I would be exausted by the time they finally got me back in the cage, but I still wouldn't give in. I'd slam myself into the cage door countless times, I'd punch the door, and when my fists eventually gave out scratched up, bloody, and numb, I'd start kicking the door with the palms of my feet intill they gave out. Rock would just sitt there dumbfounded in his cage, staring at me, obviously concerned.

Rock had just gotten back after a week of 'them' trying to teach him to kill. When he refused to attack the monkeys they had let loose in the courtyard they considered him a failed experiment and put him back in the room with me, Thorn, and Russet (the little three or four year old girl). They had considered my aggresive behavior and 'normal' avian-hybrid appearance a success. Yet I was classified as dangerous for now, I agree with that part.


	7. New

_Chapter 6_

_New_

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_Two years later_

Today has been unusual, the whitecoats haven't bothered us today, it was suddenly like we didn't matter... hopefully it stays that way. Suddenly the door swings open and a white coat comes trudging in with some kind of bundle in her arms. As she came closer Thorn realized it wasn't a something in her arms, but a someone. She had a little baby wrapped in sheets in her arms. She brought it over with two more whitecoats behind her discussing something. Thorn heard a few words of what they were saying. "It's another failed transformation." "Just put it in with the sibling."

_Sibling? As in brother or sister? Who's the sibling? Poor baby has to come to this horrible place so young. He's going to have to spend his whole life here, however long that maybe._

Thorn could feel his anger and hurt rising. Tears started falling down his face as he thought about how these people had hurt him... him and his family. He was beyond anger, beyond hurt. He wasn't sure how he felt anymore. All he knew for sure was he hated this place, hated these people, they had to get out before him and his family was hurt any more, before they hurt another baby. The whitecoat that came in with the baby was coming towards his cage. Thorn was the sibling.

The whitecoat opened the cage door calmly, knowing the 'experiment' wouldn't extract his razor harp spikes or thorns and risk hurting the child. Thorn just edged away from her slightly his eyes piercing her hatefully. She put the baby in front of him and shut the door, quickly locking it. Thorn glanced at the others and they has shock and rage in there eyes as well. Then he glanced down at the baby and his eyes softened a little, the baby had wings, a tail and puppy-like ears. This was his little brother... his biological brother. "I'll name you Star." He whispered softly as the whitecoats left the room.

_We have to get out of here I can't let them hurt my brother. They can't hurt him, I won't let them. They won't hurt me or my family anymore, we're getting out of this crazy nightmare._

He looked at the rest of what they had been calling their pack. Jesse was looking angrier than I'd ever seen her, she was barely containing her still, emotionless composure. Rock looked angry and worried. Russet was obviously scared and was already crying a little in the back of her cage. They all knew what had to be done. They were going to escape.

Jesse started trying to bash through her cage with an angry determined expression on her face, about the only emotions she ever lets anyone see. Then suddenly something amazingly big happened to her, at first Thorn and Rock both panicked, then they relaxed a little as they noticed she didn't seem to be hurt.

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I was angry... no beyond angry I was pissed and determined to get the hell out of this place. I started to throw myself at the door of my cage, punch the weakest part of the door I could find while all of these thought past through my head.

_No more! We are getting out of here! I won't let these sick basturds hurt my family any longer! I'll do anything to make them safe!...Anything!! All these years of torturing me and my family, of killing child after child with no more than an, "Oops." All of these years of pain and hurt for no better reason other than 'research' for god knows what. No more!... no more._

With ever throw and every bash I felt stronger and stronger with the power of my anger, that feeling the made my blood fill with the power of fire, the feeling of the strength to destroy anything that challenged my family or threatened their safety. Then suddenly I felt something happen, it wasn't painful but hot... very extremely hot. The powerful fire that I always felt in my blood with my anger suddenly wasn't in my blood anymore. I could acctually feel the fire seeping from my vains and through my skin. It didn't hurt... it felt amazing, the flames bursting out of my body, melting the cage bars I was still punching.


	8. Escape

_Chapter 7_

_Escape_

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I jumped through the now melted bars of my cage door, the flames subsided and I quickily unlach the rest of The Pack's cage doors. We ran to the big iron door at the front of the room then, realizing it was locked and I wasn't able to conjure up the strength and pure anger for another fire, we steped back and hid behind some cages knowing some white coats were on their way to put us back in our own cages. Five white coats burst into the room and we quickly ran out the door before it shut, while the whitecoats were trying to adjust their eyes to the dark room.

When they got their barrings and realized we were running down the hall they quickly raced after us. Thankfully Russet found the time to grab a keycard one of the whitecoats had dropped, so we opened every door we could and unlached every cage door we found with an 'experiment' in it. Soon we has dozens of children and mix-matched animals running behind me and Thorn, who was still clutching Star in his arms, with Russet and Rock bringing up the rear trying to help and encourage anyone who fell or collapsed on themselves.

We ran through countless corridors having no clue where we were going. We eventually lost the whitecoats that had been running after us, we were faster and better 'trained' than them. We had opened many hallway doors wondering when it would end. The other non-pack members were getting restless and started running in circles and zig-zags aimlessly in there fright. Then we finally burst through a door that lead to a courtyard. By this time most of the others we had rescued were gone either past out or ran down a different hallway where we were unable to chase after them.

_Finally we're out. We're acctually out! All we have to do now is keep running as fast as we can before they can catch up with us. Just keep running!_

We ran faster than we have ever ran before. Our bare feet hitting the ground through jagged rocks and thorny branches. I barely noticed; all I could think of was freedom and the open world. I was finally going to be able to go home... wherever that may be. We ran and ran until we were deep in the woods behind The School. We took a short break to catch our breath, imphasis on the short. We decided to keep moving again when we heard the faint but clear howls of wolves on a hunt. But we knew better, those howls acctully belonged to erasers, but nevertheless they were definatily on a hunt.

We ran for what felt like hours before we came to a clearing, far far away from the school, and stopped. We haden't heard a howl, or anything other than our own breathing and stomping, in a long time. But we had kept running anyway to make sure, and because we knew we would never be far enough from that place.


	9. Chapters 8 9

**Ok, so I know my chapters have been pretty short but I'll try start making them longer. Anyways, here's chapters 8 and 9.**

_Chapter 8_

_Arrangements_

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After we stopped we realized how dark it was and decided to sleep in that clearing for the night. I suggested the oldests of us shoul take shifts looking out for danger and making sure everyone is safely asleep. I was first shift so I climbed up a nearby tree and perched myself there on fuul alert and making sure everyone got to sleep. By the time everyone was asleep and I was sitting there thinking about what had happened, Rock climbed up and sat beside me.

I glanced over at him and he smiled. I sent him back a small quick smile. Then he said quietly, "So what do we do next?" "We should have a leader first. then we find out where we're gonna stay. You should be leader. You're oldest." I replied. He shook his head, "No. You're the more leaderly type. Besides, I have to go back to my parents, you know they think we're gone forever."

We sat there for a few minutes in silence. I carefully thought it over. Then I finally replied, "Ok." Afew moments later I said, "I'll bring the pack to a safe place, if any of the others want to come they can. Then it's every group for themselves." He nodded, "Ok, I'll come with you guys until I know you're safe and help you settle in." I nodded then looked down at my pack and the others sleeping more soundly than they had in years, or ever had.

_These are my family now... My responsibility. I'll never let them get taken away from me. I have to keep them safe... I will keep them safe. _

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_Chapter 9_

_My Pack_

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_Five years later_

"Breakfast!" Rock shouted up the stairs while I cooked a bunch of bacon and eggs and he set the table. Star was the first to walk down from the room he shared with Thorn, he was still in his pajamas rubbing his eyes when he walked in the room. "Hey buddy, morning." Rock said in a gentle playful voice, smiling to the little boy seeing his messy, long blonde hair. The little boy smiled then came over to me. "Good morning Jesse. What's for breakfast?" He said in his sweet childish voice. Soon Thorn came out looking tired, his clothes looking as if he just threw on the first thing he saw. He was followed by Russet who was already dressed for the day, her beautiful light brown hair was brushed and put in a neat bun like every morning. She always seemed to be getting ready before most of the pack woke up."Eggs and bacon." I said.

Thorn went strait to the fridge to get out the milk while he cheerfully said, "Good morning everyone." "Good morning," Star. "Morning," quiet and shy Russet. "Morning Thorn," Rock. Everyone lazily sat at the table while I put the freshly cooked breakfast on the table. It took us all less than five minutes to scarf down the whole thing. We always ate a lot. As soon as breakfast was over Star, Thorn, and Russet went outside to play with the chickens we had stolen so we'd have eggs every morning. We also had cows we got when they were only calves; me, Rock, and Thorn struggled quite a bit trying to fly those things to the plain in between the mountains near where we lived.

While the others were outside Rock got on the computer while I flew around the mountains for a while. Yeah I said I flew... Flying... it's the most amazing thing in the world. Feeling the air rush into your face, the warm comforting sun on your wings. Yeah that's right I said I had wings. We all did. Every member of my pack. But more on that later. I looked down on our beautiful house near a huge cliff on one of the mountains. I still remember when it was built. Rock had brought his parents up to our little one room shack in the mountains, with my permission of course.

Rock and his parents had always helped me out the best they could. But that time they helped me out more than they ever had before. Rock's father had built me and my pack a new house. My pride was telling me to refuse, but my pack had really needed it and I had to do what was best for them. Our home is a two story house, the kitchen, living room and bathrooms on the first floor, and the bedrooms on the second floor.

When I looked at that house I couldn't help but think of Rock's parents. They were the kind of adults that understood things, including why five bird-kids would want to keep their wings and location a secret but that's kind of a no-brainer. I can tell Rock misses them every day. I think about the day he came back to the pack after living with them for about a year after we escaped the school. He had flown to the house crying.


	10. Flashback

_Chapter 10_

_Flashback_

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"Jesse!!" I heard Rock yell from outside. His voice sounded kind of choked and immediantly I was worried. He burst through the door, tears streking down his almost 12-year-old face. He was out of breath and I could tell he had flown here as fast as he could. "What's wrong," I said in an urgent tone of voice. He sniffled a little then said in a broken out of breath voice, "They're gone... my p-parents are... d-dead!" Then he broke down into tears again.

I wrapped my left arm around his shoulder while I petted his thick black hair with my right hand. I tried to be as comforting as I could, making soft shushing sounds. I couldn't stand seeing him like this, he was always the happy smiley one. I couldn't help shedding a tear.

After about 15 minutes his breathing started returning to normal. He still had com tears on his face and his face was looking kind of crumpled like someone had carved deep sad lines into his face. Then he slowly explained what had happened. I'll spear you the gruesome details but all-in-all his parents had been in a car crash and didn't survive. He was heart broken, he flew to The Pack in a hurry because we were the only ones left in the world that he trusted. If he had went to anyone else they would have sent him to a foster home and would eventually be found by those hiddious whitecoats from The School, and he knew that. Ever since that trajic day, his parent's last day, he has been with me and The Pack.


	11. Decisions

**A/N: As I promised this chapter is much longer. And sorry it's taken a while to update, I've been really busy lately. Anyways, ladies and gentlemen, chapter 11. Enjoy.**

_Chapter 11_

_Decisions_

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I flew back to the house slightly depressed at the heart breaking memory of that tragic day. As I folded my dark black wings in and walked through the door Rock was pacing in the living room seemingly lost in thought. I stood behind him, and he must have scensed my silent presence because just as I reached over to tap him on the shoulder he straightened up and turned around with a slightly suprised look on his face. As soon as he saw it was me he relaxed a little. I raised my eyebrow questionly at him. He sighed and strode over to the computer, gesturing for me to follow.

I approached him and the computer wondering what had him so tense. He showed me the screen, but all I saw was some blog site. "So?" "I found this blog while I was browsing through different websites. You'll never guess who's it is." I gave him a well-get-on-with-it look and he grinned knowingly.

"This blog belongs to someone who claims to be a bird kid. And he's apart of a group of the same kind of people they call 'The Flock.'" He was still grinning. My eyes slightly widened. Suddenly he was serious, "Apparently a girl named Max is the leader of this flock and they escaped The School about four years ago. They've been on the run for a while, trying to stay free and alive, and trying to bring down The School and a place called Itex as well."

_Wow. More people like us. Who would have thought? Could there really, possibly be more of us out there trying to make things right? Trying to bring down the very people who had haunted me and My Pack's dreams for years? I need to know more about this 'flock.'_

"Find out as much as possible about 'The Flock.' We need to decide if we can trust that they're on our side. And if it would be worth helping them." I announced.

Now it was my turn to start pacing. My head was over flowing with thought after thought, question after question. Should we stay here and hide? Should we run after The Flock? What would I tell The Pack? Is it still safe even here? Without really meaning to I glanced out the window at my pack, immediatly scanning for any signs of danger. They seemed to be fine, chasing each other around until it got to the point where they started flying. I smiled inwardly. They were just so energetic and happy; they didn't seem to have a care in the world. Dare anyone take that away from them, such innocence, such beauty?

After about half an hour I called for them to come inside for lunch. At this time Russet seemed to be in the middle of a conversation with a small animal bearly perceptible, I think it was a pika, near the edge of the cliff our house sitts upon. That was Russet's ability, she could talk to any animal she wanted to, she could understand them and they can understand her. Her eyes were always gleaming with happiness and interest when she was speaking to an animal, or even more when they were speaking to her.

Thorn was the first one in the house laughing hysterically and wiping tears from his eyes. Star ran in after him trying to roar scarily, but it came out funny and adorable in his cute little four-year-old voice. Poor kid. How's anyone supposed to take him seriously when he's just too dang cute? I smiled inwardly, Star was like a little brother, or maybe even a son to me. I had helped raise him since he was a little baby with scrawny little gray wings.

Russet shuffled into the house a few minutes later having finished her conversation with the tiny rodent. She sat down at the table with the rest of us with her head down. She was the shyest of the group. She was always trying her best to either not be noticed or look as neutral as possible, not too girly or desperate, yet not too gross and unkept that it was as if she didn't even bother. She was self-cautious and unsocial. But when she was talking to an animal all of her worries seemed to go away, like she beleived they couldn't judge her because they didn't understand humans and their thoughts on how they should act or dress.

We all chowed down, eating our food as if it was our last meal... as usual. I couldn't stop thinking about that blog. Could my pack really be refound by The School just as they found 'The Flock?' I had a lot of thinking to do, and a lot of decisions to make. Is it safe to stay here or should we find The Flock while we're ahead? I still haven't talked to The Pack about what Rock and I had discovered. I needed a way to break the ice.

I thought for a few minutes while I started to clear the table after everyone was finished eating. Then I decided the best way to go was wait until I was sure of what we were going to do then call a pack meeting. There was no reason to worry them incase this was nothing.

It's been a few days and Rock could tell I was thinking hard about this. He'd been 'researching' The Flock every chance he could get, browsing the blog and even Google for all the information he could get from them. When I wasn't trying to think through a decision or a plan on if we did have to leave, I was helping Rock with the 'research,' or making sure the area around the house and the mountains near us were 'eraser-free.' We even took secret shifts during the night to watch over the house. I had the first four hours and he had the next four hours.

One day I was researching the blog and something caught my eye. I scrolled down the screen, then I saw something that could answer all of our questions. It was so painfully obvious that I felt stupid for not noticing it in the first place. Then that night I used the four hours that Rock had watch to fly to the nearest town.

I saw the library in the middle of town and slowly pulled my wings in. I glided down behind the huge library then immediantly looked around. Convinced that I was alone and there were no cameras, I made my way to the window and unlocked it with my telekinesis, that was my other power: moving things with my mind. After I had opened the window and silently climbed inside I went to the science-fiction section and started searching.

It had been four days since I had stolen the books I was looking for and started reading. The Pack had obviously noticed me and Rock's preoccupied behavior. One day when I was still reading Thorn came into my room looking kind of suspicious at me, like he had a lot of questions he was determined to get an answer to. I gave him a look like I had no idea why he was looking like that. He walked over to me and asked casually, "what's that." He was gesturing to the book in my hands. I shrugged. "Nothin.'" He wasn't the least bit convinced. "Jesse, cut the crap and tell me what's up." I was slightly suprised at his sudden directness. I sighed.

_I guess I have to tell them sooner or later. I was just hoping it would be later._

"Fine, we'll have a pack meeting in fifteen minutes and I'll tell you guys everything." I said in a commanding voice despite Thorn's pushing me to make the decision. He left the room relctantly, seeming to want the whole story immediatly.

_**15 minutes later**_

"Okay guys, here's the deal." I managed a tone that said I-know-exactly-what-I'm-doing-so-sit-down-and-shut-up... as if. So, back to the present situation, Rock and I explained everything that we had found. It took quite a while, but finally after about an hour everything was out. The rest of The Pack sat there stunned and open mouthed.

"So...um... what are we going to do." Thorn stammered.

I took a moment to look at my pack's faces, took a deep breath, then spoke. "The leader, Max, supposedly has a mother in Arizona. Were not even sure if this flock even exists or if it's just one big hoax, or maybe even a trap. What I'm saying is, if Max's mom, Dr. Martinez, really exist, then so should The Flock and there 'stories'. So, we'll find Dr. Martinez, if she exists. Knowing we can trust her, we'll show her our wings then see if there's any way we can help The Flock. Then we'll decide what's next from there."

I still wasn't sure if this plan was gold, but it was all I had so far. I felt queesy thinking about the ways this could go wrong. The risks we were taking were dangerous and maybe even fatal. I tried to push those thoughts away and look as confident as possible.

I stood there for a moment to let everything I said to sink in. Finally, Thorn spoke up with a question. "But, what if we can't find... Dr. Martinez?" He looked up at me questionly. "We'll come back home and continue our lives." I said, shrugging.


End file.
